Tagged....

Yikes I've been tagged by Julie at Feeling Simply Quilty for seven Random Things about me. I'm terrible at these things!

1. I love auctions, boot/yard sales or anything like that. I used to collect anything related to quilts now I am picking up typiclly British things to bring home with me. My latest buy was a light pine chest of drawers to help with fabric storage. The pastel star below is one of my favorite finds!

2. If I were to pick a craft to learn that I don't currently do it would be pottery...or maybe stained glass...or furniture refinishing....

3. My favorite color rose used to be a rosey apricot but now I like the deep golden color that my neighbor in the village grows.

4. I love to bake. I still use the Brownie recipe I got in middle school but I collect recipes all the time. My husband complains that once I get a recipe right I never use it again!

5. One of the things about MS that I hate most is how it has effected my writing and speaking - not sure if it is the MS or the meds I take for it but I feel a step behind.

6. I currently have four projects going on my cutting table; a bright baby quilt; a repro star and hourglass; a red, white, and blue sampler; and a pink and green rose sampler. No problem with getting any of the fabrics mixed up with this lot.

7. I read at least one historical mystery a week. They are like brain candy! Right now I am reading The Traitor's Tale, A Dame Frevisse medieval mystery (I've read a couple others of this series and they are fun.) Also on the bedside table is Medicus, a Novel of the Roman Empire from a new author (at least to me!) Ruth Downie.

The photo below is of Tewkesbury Abbey. I really love how it towers above the town. On a clear day you can see the tower from out little local church. There is some sort of covenant that says that nothing can be built or planted that blocks the view from the church to the abbey.

The royal Ascot Races

Just a quick post today. The weather is really gloomy outside and the dog is demanding some attention...so much harder to wear him out if you can't go outside and thow the ball across the fields.

Yesterday I went to the Royal Ascot Races. It would have been nicer if the weather had behaved a bit better but overall it was a nice time. The horses were beautiful however I think we spent most of our time people watching! The outfits went from totally gorgeous to "what were they thinking?"

My favorite spot for seeing the horses was in the paddocks area which is the photo above. Before the race they walk the horses around a few times then the jockey jumps on. The colors and patterns of the jockey's silks is breathtaking at times. (There is a quilt in there someplace!)

My favorite spot for people watching was on the other side of the course by the winner's circle. There the attendees were dresses more like the TV photos (thre are unfortunatley some tacky -no pun intended - areas in the course...my friend who was doused with beer by a drunken 20-something was not a happy person!) That aside, I wish we had come over to the Winner's circle area earlier. No man really looks bad in a morning suit...which I will add to the list of white shirt with jeans, flight suit, and tuxedo.

Black and white with the bright, bright pink was a big color combination for women. My favortie outfit was an aqua blue dress with a black hat, bag and shoes sooo wish I could have gotten a photo. Interestingly she wasn't the prettiest woman there, not the youngest, nor the thinniest...but heads turned as she walked past. Good for her!

Now this is an awfully long ramble on style and clothing from a woman who spends 90% of her waking moments in either sweats or jeans. (as I write this I am wearing a read University of Nevada Las Vegas red hoody sweatshirt, greay baggy sweatpants with the elastic missing at the right ankle, and grey socks that show the London Underground map (never know when you'll need one of those!) I did dress well yesterday though not a stand out by any measure. There was a point in my life that I did really care about what I wore. I had my colors done. I had two suits custom made. I spent outrageous amounts of money on handbags/briefcases/shoes. The 90's were an expensive decade!

Below is another of the village garden's that I love to walk past...

High Tea

Sorry it has been so long between posts this time. Life has gotten in the way of blogging and at the risk of whining for way too long I'm just leaving it at that.

I did go to my first British High Tea at the Queen Hotel this week. Very nice. It gave me incentive to get out of my pajamas and dress like a big girl for a change! I took the bus into town so I wouldn't stress about parking. I wandered through some stores hoping to find something to wear to the races Saturday...that is just another depressing post that I will leave to another date (it is cold in this country so why I ask do none of the dresses have sleeves...heck most barely had straps to hold them up!) I ended up buying a hat that mad my husband laugh so hard he almost choked - do you think a jury would convict me for that?!

For the Americans - High Tea was served using the really nice three tier servers: on the top were the little sandwiches (salmon on white and egg salad and cress on whole grain - both with the crusts cut off); next came the sweets (fruit cake, pound cake, and eclairs); and then finally, the scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam. I am very partial to scones and these were very, very good scones. It was a nice afternoon.

The photos are of two of the blocks we are doing in the Fairford group. I am doing two sampler quilts - one red, white and blue and the other in pinks and greens. Unfortunately I don't always get each block finished in both colorways so this was a bit of a catch-up week for me. Next week we will do paperpiecing which I love but I know it takes a bit of getting used to...somehow seeing things backwards never quite bothered me but I've worked with folks who end up destroying the paper because they have to "unsew" so many times! We'll take this one slow!

June Garden Tour

Today I have gotten lots of quilting inspiration from the local Garden tour...amazing. Just what an American would think English Gardens are supposed to look like! The tour was in Ashton-under-Hill, which is one of the many villages around Breedon Hill. Thre were over 25 gardens open and lots of stalls selling garden stuff.

It was a bit to hot (can't believe I'm writing that!) for me to walk around too long but we got through almost half of them. (one of the volunteers was nice enough to check off the ones she reccomended!) I couldn't believe it when I got home and went to upload my photos to my computer...87 photos! I think that is a one day record for me! (don't worry I will not be posting all of them....) The colors were just amazing. I wasn't sure if I wanted to run home and play in fabric or pull the paints out of storage!

Happy Birthday

Well another milemarker is swiftly moving into the rear view mirror! To celebrate my birthday today I let myself buy some quilt-y stuff on line - timtex, thread, a few yards of fabric, and batting. I also stopped by a local potter and got a new pot to put on the black stand I picked up at the auction last week.

I played in fabric most of the morning without a lot to show for it...mainly folding, planning , and deplanning (taking fabric out of boxes/bags after deciding I don't want to do that project anymore!) That is one way of shortening the someday list!

I also made myself a Birthday cake.... a Peanut Butter Pound Cake! I got the recipie from a co-worker in North Carolina years ago (maybe 9!) and had never attempted making it myself. It is great. (must be a bit of homesickness coming through....) DH is bringing home chocolate ice cream to go on top so I left off the topping (like that helps the calorie count at all!) It makes a huge cake so I ran some pieces over to neighbors...if it sat on my sideboard I wouldn't be able to zipper my jeans tomorrow! (not the best way of starting out a new year....)

Peanut Butter Pound Cake

1 cup butter

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

2 cups sugar

1 cup brown sugar

5 eggs

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking pwder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1 Tablespoon vanilla

(topping optional)

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

1/4 cup evaporated milk

Beat 1 cup butter and 1/2 cup peanut butter at medium speed of a electric mixer until soft ad creamy (about 2 min.) Gradually add 2 cups sugar and 1 cup brwon sugar, beting at medium speed for 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until yellow just disappears.

Combine flour, baking powder, soda, and salt; stir well. Add flour misture to butter mixture alternating with the milk beginning and ending with the flour. Mix at low speed until just blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla. pour batter inot a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 35 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10-15 mintues. Remove from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

For the optional topping: beat powdered sugar, peanut butter and melted butter together at a low speed until well blended. Add evaporated milk and beat at a medium speed until smooth. drizzle over cake.

Baby Quilt blocks

The sun is shining here in England...what a relief! Yesterday we walked around Breedon Hill and peeked into some of the gardens. Beautiful! The poppies are putting in their appearance and stealing the show in this photo from Beckford.

As I promised in my prior post here is a photo of the blocks I am doing for a baby quilt for one of the new quilters in our group. The blocks are 7.5 finished. I made up some 'kits" for the other members of the group or they can use their own fabric (as quilting newbe's they don't have deep stashed yet...but they are working had at it!)

I had to post a photo of my walk 'buddies." (once again I am sure the other villagers think I'm crazy for taking photos of livestock but hey...I'm a city-kid!) This black and white cow/steer follows Macbeth and I along the fence when-ever we pass her/his field. Today I brought the camera and low and behold the rest of the herd nudged their way into the act! They are so cute it almost makes me swear off meat!

Back to the world

The photo of Goldie shows a bit how I have felt lately. Too much rain-rain-rain, a cold, an MS relaspe has made me a whiney-whiney woman. Anyway the sun came out yesterday and I am crawling back out into the world.

Just one example of how this past week went. I really wanted to go to my quilting group on Wednesday. I had printed out some paperpiecing blocks, made some examples (with low eyesight paperpiecing is more of a challenge than you would think!) and had packed up some "find a new home" bits and pieces of fabric. In the the morning it was raining so DH offered to pack the bags and my sewing machine in the car. A few minutes later his ride pulled in the driveway and he was off the London for the day. I finished my coffee, locked up the house, went to get my keys off the rack - no keys. Looked through my bags, the kitchen counters....(you know the drill.....) Then it hit me...DH must have put them in his pocket.....I stayed home.

(if you are thinking why doesn't she have a spare?...see my post on being robbed in Barcelona - whine.whine.whine)

I did pull some bright fabrics from the stash and start making blocks. I stacked my CD player with Bonnie Rait, Eurythmics (sp?), Tina Turner, and Blondie. Boy does that tell my age or what! The blocks will make up the core of a baby quilt for one of the Fairford quilters....I'll show them tomorrow.

My big adventure was a quick trip into Tewksbury for an auction. I picked up a cute tea service (bright yellow with roses on it!) and a hand crank sewing machine with some nice graphics on it. I haven't quite figured out how to use the machine so if any of you have a hint. (does it use a bobbin and if so where the heck is it!!!)

I am so tired these days I am having problems doing anything with my quilting projects. Yesterday at the stitching meeting I worked on one of my little projects...how can a 15x15 inch quilt can take 5 years. How many months per square inch would that be? Too many...

The quilt at the top is an antique maverick. It is so ugly it is beautiful. I think I may have posted it when I first started blogging. It is still one of my favorite quilts!

Thanks for all the ideas on what to do this bank holiday weekend. I think we will make it up to Shrewsbury and take a few trips across the Welsh border. (I'm going to try and get him to Strokesay but he isn't a castle type of guy!) Another american loaned us a book called Cadfael Country which we will use as a bit of a guide. I'm just happy we don't have to deal with an airport this weekend!

MaggieART - Margaret Hunt: So we met ETV Roadshow and

I hope this link thing works.....My friend Maggie Hunt back in the states had a big day. A couple years ago she met a very talented artist that moved back to S.C. from NY. His art is primative but not...hard to explain but I love his works. He often has textiles in the paintings - quilts, clothes on the line....anyway a news magazine show featured both Maggie for her quilting arts and Jeff for his painting. You can see the taping of the show at her blog (make sure and go down to the second to last photo and check out the really neat chicken quilt!!! MaggieART - Margaret Hunt: So we met ETV Roadshow and

Anniversary

Today is my wedding anniversary. We have been married for 8 years. Boy has that gone fast. I was thinking this morning as I absorbed my caffine that in 8 years we have moved 3 times (including the most current one overseas!) DH has changed cars once, me twice and his son 5 times...(Ishould hear a big thank-you from Detroit on that one....) We have visited 8 countries (seems like that should have been more but there it is....) To celebrate we are going to a local Pub restaurant, The Hobnail, for dinner later this week. Tonight I am making him Youvarlakia Avgolemono (Meatballs with Rice in a lemon sauce) and Greek Salad. He is not a big dessert person so I am making some biscotti with pistachios, cranberries, and apricots.

Thanks to Calico Cat for the fun link that I made the photo at the top on...so easy even I was able to work it and that is saying something!

The photo above is another of the bed uncoverings...it is a 1930-ish crazy quilt. There are some fun fabrics in there with lots of peach and blue. It is hand quilted with a very thin batting. It came from the eastern shore of Maryland. Makes me think of the crumb blocks!

We are trying to think of places to visit over the long weekend coming up. Since I am a huge Cadfael fan we may go to up there for a day. I'd like to take a long walk around Broadway if the weather holds up.

I am at sort of a stalling point on my quilting. Too many projects at awkward phases. I just need to put them all on pieces of paper, toss it in a hat, and pull on out. Not very scientific but it may work!

Here is the recipe for the Meatballs.....

1 pound ground beef

1/3 cup rice

1 egg, beaten

1 clove garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons parsley, chopped

2 Tablespoons fresh dill, chopped (or 2 teaspoons dried)

salt and pepper

1/2 cup flour

Sauce:

1 cup boiling chicken broth

2 eggs, beaten

juice of 1 lemon

Combne meat, rice, egg, garlic, pasley, and dill. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Knead well. Shape into walnut size balls. Roll lightlyin flour. Shake off eny excess flour.

Place the meatball in a large skillet, pot or casserole dish that can be used on the stove top. (you want the meatballs to all be on one level) Pour in enough boiling chicken broth to cover. Simmer covered for 45 minutes. Add more broth or water is there is less than 1 cup of liquid left. Increase heat and boil a few minutes more, then remove pot from heat.

Beat the 2 eggs until frothy. Slowly add the joice of one lemon, beating continuously. Remove one cup of the hot liquid used to cook the meatballs. Slowly add this to the egg and lemon - beting continuously. (If you add it too quickly you will cook the egg and the sauce seperates.) Pour the avgolemono sauce into the pot of meatballs. Stir gently. Serve hot with lots of crusty bread! (makes about 24 meatballs. It should serve 4 but my DH and stepson could finish off the pot in very little time...)

Quilt Show

This has been such a busy week...can't do too many like this! Thursday I went to an auction preview to see another sampler. It was a good news/bad news: Bad news - the sampler wasn't anything I was interested in; good news - it made the decision on going to the quilt show on Friday easy!

I met up with some of the Fairford quilting group on Friday at the Quilt show in the Malvern Three Counties Showground. For several of the folks it was their first quilt show so it was fun to see their reaction to the quilts and the vendors. (And before I forget I got the most American-like hot doughnut at the coffee stand outside the showground...heaven!)

I was impressed by the show. Most of the quilts have a definate British feel to them. The best in show was a green wholecloth done with the Welsh/British designs. I loved this quilt! The quilting was beautiful. The photo seems to emphasis the color gradation a bit more intense than it is in person.

The second quilt also won several ribbons. I would be more specific about who made the quilts however as I ran to my car in the rain (surprise, surprise, surprise...) I must have dropped the show booklet. Must have been that mudslide I did for the last 15 feet to the car. Anyway back to the quilts...the blue applique was done entirely by machine. Now I do my applique by hand and admit to being a bit of a "hand stitch snob" but this quilt may have converted me! The holly block on the bottom orw second from the left was don so that the leaves looked like they were velvet. The stippling was soooo tiny and perfect.

I really like it when I see colors or techniques that I had turned my nose up at a show and find myself loving the quilt! The photo on the left is one of those quilts. She used the cathedral windows technique but used beautiful fabrics and then surrounded it by the flying geese. At the end of the day - a very classy looking quilt. (So unlike the cathedral window potholders I made in high school!)

I will post more photos later...blogger is being tempermental and taking its own sweet time with the photos. I volunteered to help at the British American social groups table at the boot sale this morning which ment and early wake-up only to get the whole thing set up then the rain came pouring down (seems to be a theme here.....) I got home drenched and cold. I went right back to bed to restart the day.....

Rainy and tired...

It has rained, rained and rained some more. This is getting old. I just haven't had the engergy to do any quilting...or much of anything for that matter.

So you are getting some more photos of my long day of folding quilts...those of you who viewed earlier posts will notice that we are now one level down on the same bed from the maryland applique!

I love log cabin quilts. This one isn't in the best shape but it has some great fabrics and I love how the center block is split dark and light. It also has a very funky red and green border. I am wondering now if I am going to bother putting these all back on the bed anytime soon....

Maryland Applique Quilt

My niece and nephew have gone back to the states and the house feels very quiet. Even the pets are fast asleep.

I thought I would post a few photos of my Applique quilt dated 1864. Most of the signitures are from Maryland however there are two from Pennsylvania. It makes sense since the towns listed are all on the border of the the two states.

The blocks are about 17 inches. The fabric that now reads blue would have been green. The dye process then was to over dye the blue with yellow to get green. Unfortunely it didn't stand the test of time!

I saw a few blogs that quilters were listing their fantasy or dream quilt. This would be mine. I've had it for over 12 years and each time I take it out I wonder why I have waited to start making the blocks! They are not overly complicated. Many are so "wonky," like the flower and berries above, that I could almost applique it freehand! I just need to sit down and start. I think I have collected enough fabric to make it ten times over.

Family tourists

I've seen more of England the past few days than I have in the past several months! My niece and nephew are visiting and we have put a lot of miles on the car and worn my legs out!

Friday we to several villages around my area then headed up to Stratford on Avon. My niece is an English major so I thought this would be a good fit! I was amazed at the number of Americans that were there! I also didn't realize just how big a town it was...lots of shopping available. The guide at the Nash house was particularly good. The photo above is of the garden there.

Friday we headed up to Warwick Castle. It was a good choice. I had no idea my nephew was that interested in medieval armor! You could easily spend a day there...it took me almost that long to walk up the narrow steps to the top of the turrets! The gardens there were beautiful too. Later we walked around the town - lots of interesting antique shops that I need to go back and investigate! On the way back we stopped in the village of Broadway and later went to Hailes Abbey. A pretty packed day. I made dinner that night, chicken with eggplant, then we went to a thatched roofed pub in Prestbury for an ale. It also gave me a chance to retell the ghost stories I learned from some of the locals! (It claims to be the most haunted village in England!)

We had a great rainbow too. You could see almost the entire arch and as we were trying to take photos of the very base of the rainbow another rainbow started to form. Very fun.

Today unfortunately was very rainly. We dropped my nephew off at the busstation so he could make his way back to Heathrow and then on to San Diago. My niece is here for a few more days. She and I went into Tewksbury and saw the abby but after getting soaking wet decided that going home and putting in a few movies was a good idea. She has been traveling for weeks and was pretty worn out. So today we watched "Good night and Good luck," and the second Harry Potter, "The Chamber of Secrets." We also made Tacos and brownies. Good comfort food.

I have tried several times to get through to my Mom to wish her happy birthday but so far no luck - just the answering the machine. So frustrating.

Piles of quilts

I only have time for a quick post this morning. My niece and nephew are coming to visit and still have bits of quilting and needlework covering too many surfaces! Part of the getting ready for them to visit however was taking my antique quilts off of the spare bed. I store them there flat on the bed wih a sheet inbetween each and a sheet on the top (to keep Goldie hair off of them!) It took a long time...it was sort of like meeting old friends.

I wanted to show a photo of the one on top because I noticed that one of the members of the blog ring was using these blocks in a quilt. (sorry I can't remember who...Dh was talking the entire time I was blogging!)

Good news on the stitching group front. I found a group on a village only a few miles away that meets every other week in the village hall. It is a nice group. Several of them are in a patchwork class together. I did some hand applique for the first time in ages!

Flowers and other things

The past two days have been more seasonal here...cool with bits of rain. We needed it. I also needed to stay in and ge the hosue ready for my niece and nephew's visit later this week. It is so hard to do laundry and dust when the sun is out! Note how british I am becoming - I automaticly start talking about the weather! Anyway, the showeres hasve also given me time to work on the little needlepoint bag I bought at the gardensale the other day (1 pound for two unfinished bags.) There are some very tiny beads on this that started to fall around me like bits of hail the moment I took it out of the bag. I think I got most of them back on...enough for me anyways! I'm going to try my hand at putting one of them together this week. I am going to run over to the Beckford silk and get some black for the inside.....Before you ask -I have no idea what I will do with it when I am finished. It will remain impractical and pretty - there is space in the world for that no?!

I noticed a lot of flower photos as I cruised the blogs this weekend so I decided to post a few from my village. On the left are the lilacs I see from my front door. The cottage across the street has a beautiful front garden with a half a dozen different types/color lilac bushes. I feel a bit spoiled since I get to enjoy the view of a great garden without any of the work.

At the top is some queen Anne's lace. The sides of the road are just covered in this right now. It reminds me of my family's cottage by the beach...we made small bowls from clay and pressed the Queen Anne's lace flower into them for decoration. Then we buried the pot in the hot sand and let them bake. The things moms come up with to keep kids occupied during summer vacation!

We walked up to bluebell woods on Breedon Hill last week and glimpsed the end of their blooms. Next year I will plan better and see them at their peak. It was still worth the climb. It has a very Tolkien/elfen feel to it...old trees, quiet, small running brook, lots of low dark green undergrowth. Can you tell I really like it there!

Unfortunatly to get to the Blue bell woods I have to go through this...the dreaded rapeseed blooms. It feels like they are everywhere. A few weeks ago I was going on and on about how pretty and bright they made the hills look....now I can barely open my eyes wide enough to see!

Finally a photo of a huge (ok about 3 inches long) snail that has taken up residence in our garden. I know they eat the plants but he is so cute! I just keep meoving him over to the blackberry canes that we want to get rid of anyway....

Call me sneezy

I've lived in some areas of the US. that are renowned for pollen (for instance Georgia where you have to brush the yellow pine pollen off your car in the morning so you can see out the windshield!) however I have been fortunate to never really having a problem with allergies...that is until now!

About three days ago both my husband and I started to sneeze, sniffle, and generally wheeze. These hillsides of blooming orchards, hedgerows of white hawthorne, lanes of queen's annes' lace, front yards full of lilacs, and field upon field of who knows what is killing me! Poor MacBeth (my black scottish terrier) comes running out of the fields looking nuclear - there is so much pollen on him he glows!

On top of this I did a really stupid thing. Hearing me sniffling the woman at the organic farm stand suggested I try some of the unfiltered local vegetable oil. She said it would help me build up an immunity to the new pollens. Sounded good. When I got home I tasted the oil. Tasted good. So I poured some on my salad thinking I was helping my body defeat the allergies. A few minutes later I could feel my throat closing and was having troupble breathing. Not good. Fortunately we had lots of Benadryl on hand. A few of those, drank lots of warm water and wore steamy towels around my neck and I am still here to write about it...what an idiot I can be!

I know some of you will say that the field in the photo above is not supposed to cause allergies. My only arguement to that is a) the amount of rape grown in our area has increased 5x since the studies were done b) a major reason given for it not causing allergies was the seed is too heavy to be blown far by the wind...I wonder if they really checked the wind streagth coming off our hills and if they considered the effect of a small blcak terrier running through the plants (it took a bathtub full of Dawn detergent to get the sticky stuff off of him.... (by the way ours is the hill on the far right in the photo which was taken from halfway up Breedon Hill.)

Enough whining (or sniffling)...on to fabric and fun stuff. The photo on the top is the second basket with my quilting group. This will be the first bit of applique for them. The photo on the left is of another block (hidden star I think) that we will do. I'm not sure if I like this one very much but I don't dislike it enough to make it over in different fabrics! Besidesit may be one of those blocks that looks better when joined up with the others in the sampler quilt.

Craft Trail

Growing up the Adams house, which was built by John and Abigal, was only a couple miles from our house. Everytime we drove by my sisters and I would say, "some weekend we should go tour the house." To date I still have not visited it. Now this comes to mind because this is a bank holiday weekend and my friends are all talking of going to Holland, Poland, Italy, Turkey, Spain....my DH and I are going 10 miles down the road to a food festival then are going to do the craft trail around Breedon Hill which you can see from our front door. We've decided to be local tourists.

The photo at the top is of a local potter's shop, Toff Milway's Conderton Pottery. His work is beautiful and he and his wife are two of the nicest people I've met in England. His workshop is one of four that make up the Breedon hill craft trail. My DH hasn't been to any of them so this weekend we will make the curcuit and find a anniversary present for us!

Today I have to focus and get some blocks and directions made up for the Fairford group. Tomorrow we are doing baskets. Below is the Harvest Basket. We will also so the Scrap Basket and the Stamp Basket. Of course I have the directions written up for the last two which I haven't made a sample yet. The Harvest BAsket I have made a sample but have not written up the directions....focus, focus, focus! (it is a great day for a walk though.....)

Signs of Spring

The past few days the weather has been "brilliant" - one of my favorite colloquialisms!

The village next to us has a large asparagus farm so for the last week we have had asparagus for almost every meal. My favorite way of making it is to bake it at 450 degrees F covered tightly with aluminum foil. Before baking add some some real butter with pepper and Old bay seasoning. So easy and so good. We have also had it blanched with Garlic dipping sauce, Stir Fried with sesame oil, stuffed in Chicken with artichokes, and - of course - asparagus soup.

It inspired me to dig through the quilting books and uncover one of those "someday" projects. There is a great asparagus block in Ruth McDowell's book that I am going to try and tackle in the next few weeks.

Saturday I went to the Spring Garden Fair at Highnam Court Gardens. It was a really nice event. I bought a few Iris from a plant stall, a small butter press and a beaded purse. The picture below is one of the plant beds that I really liked the colors. Unusual colors for me...I took lots of photos of it for future quilting inspriation.

I think what I really love about it is I can differentiate the red and the greens...now that may not seem like a big deal but my last episode of MS/optic neuritis left me a bit color blind. I was having problems with shadows and for once lots of food looked very unappitizing. I also couldn't tell when meat was cooked...very odd. Anyway, took some tests (reminded me of going into the army...what do you see?) and didn't see the numbers when others could. Long story short - it really freaked me out to think I may not be able to see fabric the way others could or the way I used to see it. Anyway, it seems to be getting better! I'll just stay with the brights and the red, white and blues for awhile.